Dress Me In Forest And Cloak Me In Moonlight
by BellatrixLestrangey
Summary: AU: Regina is a werewolf and Robin is a hunter.
1. Cloud Coverage

The fresh blanket of snow found a sparkling crystalline appearance under the moonbeams that seeped through the tree branches. It was dark.

Silent.

Eerie.

Regina dug her hands into the snow, face twisted into a pained grimace. She was panting heavily (each exhale releasing a new trail of smoke) trying to regain control…mostly over her breathing.

Every bone in her body groaned when she moved. Every muscle straining and screeching…particularly her abs. She dragged herself along the ground seeking out the nearest tree to lean against. Breathing was becoming an agony of its own; she hadn't even walked a mile, but it felt like she'd just ran 10.

Regina let herself sink completely to the ground, the snow biting her cheek. It was much too cold. She slammed her fist into the snow as if she could actually harm it back.

Another violent spasm rocked her body. Her arms throbbed and ached more intensely than anything else.

She let out a pained cry, digging her nails further into the snow, this time she'd clawed into the grass beneath.

Regina's eyes fell upon the moon. That horrendous night orb…glowing fuller and brighter than ever. She couldn't even recall how this came to happen. She rolled onto her side clutching her middle until she found them ripping into her own flesh.

She jerked them away. Blood drizzling from the breaks in her skin, working past the torn cloth. Regina drew her legs as close to her body as she could and let one of the tears that had been prickling behind her eye for the last hour or so, slide out.

Another spasm.

Regina gripped her knees tighter. Her claws again piercing delicate skin.

Her whole body was trembling and shaking.

She slapped her hand to the snow again. What was left behind was a grotesque cross between a hand and a paw print.

As if the town didn't want her dead anyways. She glanced in its direction, she could just make out the clock tower looming against the skyline. Regina could only hope that she put enough distance between it and herself. She wasn't going to get very far at this point.

Regina whipped her head to the side as if hit squarely in the jaw. Hit would be an understatement to describe the feeling…the slight burning sensation working its way over her face. It felt more like someone just slugged her jaw with a sack of rocks.

A metallic tang sliding down her throat. What blood didn't wind up there bubbled up and seeped through her lips.

Regina's breathing was now growing twice as erratic as she tried to combat the pain…tried to put a stop to the transformation.

She found herself heaving herself up right once more, back at a painful arch, claws tarring more deeply into the ground that ever before.

The clouds rolled away from the moon.

Regina's coverage was lost completely; a beam of moon casting directly over her.

There was no control here. Not even a semblance of it.

Robin heard the howl, it was only a short distance away from his camp.

Roland bunched himself up as closely to his fater as he could. The boy was quivering. Terrified. He hadn't heard the howling since he was in the Enchanted Forest. He didn't think he'd ever hear it again. They almost got him that night; one of the wolves nipping at his cloak and the larger set on a pounce.

Robin had taken it out.

But not before they'd torn his wife apart.

Since then the man had dedicated himself to hunting the weres down. Every full moon.

This time was a mistake. He'd miscalculated the lunar calendar. He was a week off and because of that he put what was left of his family in danger. The two of them were going to spend a week camping, and he'd send Roland off (likely to Regina's house) the night before the full moon. He and his merry men would remain for the hunt.

Evidently they were all there now. And the hunt was about to hit full swing.

He waited for Will to enter the tent, he had been the one to volunteered to watch Roland. Truth be told he was scared, he wanted to part in the hunt.

Robin picked up his bow and his set of silver arrows.

He'd take the wolf down tonight and be back for the dinner date he'd promised Regina tomorrow.


	2. Three Silver Arrows

Robin glanced up at the moon…full as it'd ever be. It was now or never. Maybe this wolf wasn't the one that took his wife, but killing any of them was good enough. He would be rid of them all.

Well except for Ruby, he'd grown to trust the girl, she didn't seem like the type to want to hurt anyone.

"You ready Robin." It was Little John.

The archer wasn't much in the mood for words so he simply beckoned his little band towards the woods.

Little John poised the flashlight directly ahead of them.

Robin finally spoke…a mere whisper. "Give me a scan of the woods if you will."

The man moved the flashlight slowly from east to west. Not a paw print or scratch in sight. Robin had no clue where to start. The howling seemed to have come from the north, but the wolves are a fast breed, it could be anywhere now. He'd just have to wait for another howl.

The man led his group deeper into the forest, where the dark came in cloaks and the trees drew together. "Might as well find a nice stump boys, this may take a while. He lowered himself to the ground and started at the night sky.

What an ugly thing the moon was. He used to marvel in its beauty…in its light. But now. Now it was just an ungodly disk in the sky. How can one giant rock light-years away create such nightmarish beings?

Robin heard the faintest pop behind him…a twig. His hand moved to his arrows.

"My bad." Tuck whispered.

Robin sighed and loosened his grip on the arrow.

The man was growing more and more restless as the minutes ticked by. And he was growing cold as well. And if it even mattered a trip to the restroom would be nice. A skin-nipping breeze cut through the forest, allowing for the trees to close in even more. Robin shivered.

"Perhaps we should call it in?" John suggested. "Maybe that one was just a regular wolf…caught its prey and moved on…"

"I know a werewolf howl John. I heard it up close and in person. I'll never forget it…" He trailed off.

And at last a howl split the sky echoing from each and every way. Robin's body went tense, a chill trailing up his spine. The beast was closer than he anticipated.

He jumped to his feet. "That's defiantly a were."

"Yes Robin, I am _a were_ of this." One of Robin's men snickered.

"This is no time for jokes." Robin scolded. "Now if you would, a little quiet."

He focused in on the forest around him. Another howl to the left. It couldn't be that far off. He snatched out an arrow and positioned it on the knocking point, it'd be ready for him to fire when needed—all he'd have to do is aim and fire.

Without a word to his men he took off in the direction of the howl bolting around and in between trees, ducking under branches and over thickets. His speed never once breaking.

"Why'd you bring us if you were just going to…" Little John's sentence fell flat.

The wolf stood before them…actually stood. This one wasn't like Ruby. Not at all, this was like the one that killed his wife—a hideous cross between man and wolf…_woman_ and wolf.

She wasn't a very pretty sight either; long snout, grotesque muscular form beneath thick dark brown fur…he wondered what she looked like in human from—hopefully better than this.

Little John wasn't much of a runner, in fact the man constantly vocalized his hatred of it…but in that moment Robin had never seen someone take off so fast. His men scattered. They signed up to take down a wolf like Ruby, not this. Not the hybrid one.

It—she—was fast.

Went right for John.

Robin released the arrow. And another. The first slid into the wolf-woman's thigh. The next just scratching her side. "Nice aim." He spat sarcastically to himself. But really, how could he keep a good aim with his arm trembling so furiously.

The were's attention shifted to him. At least he would only get himself killed and not his men.

The wolf snarled and bared her sharp, ugly bloodied teeth. Her golden eyes fixed on him. They were filled with bloodlust, rage, and something else…pain?

She pounced on him, claws ripping through his coat. The cold air rushed into the opening chilling his every bone.

Arrows. Why did he bring arrows? This wasn't the Enchanted Forest, he should have bought the guns. Storybrooke was bound to have a silver bullet or two, if not in Gold pawn shop, in Regina's cluttered little vault.

How he'd much rather be in there. With her. Safe.

The werewolf had him pinned. What was he thinking? He couldn't do this alone.

Her face was inches from his. Her breath smelled of death. Who had she killed? Based on the fur and blood smeared on her teeth he could guess it was a small animal. He had no desire to join it. He bought his knee to her stomach.

She provided him with no response. Wasn't even fazed. He tried again, this time connecting with her already wounded thigh. A squelching noise signaled that the arrow shifted, burrowing deeper into the beast's flesh.

She snarled and yanked it out.

Her growl was a vial sound to hear, and he got it in full blast. He fired another arrow, this one meeting her stomach.

Close enough.

Distracting enough.

He hauled ass.

The moon glared at him.

Mocked him.

Regina squinted, the light was all too bright. It cast itself upon the snow…

Snow.

She was laying in the snow.

Bloody snow.

Her body racking with shivers. The tattered strips of clothing that remained on her body did little to help ease the chill.

And she couldn't even recall why she was laying in the snow in the middle of the forest—moreover without any cloths on—in the first place.

Her side pulsed painfully.

An arrow graze.

She tried to sit herself upright but a ripping pain, radiating from her stomach, had her right back on the ground. She let a pained moan escape her lips.

She looked around. Blood. God, so much blood…

Her own?

It had to be.

Regina tried getting up again, this time clenching her teeth and pushing against the pain. She stumbled over to a tree before sliding to the ground again, arms clutching her stomach. She was so dizzy and tired. She longed to heal the wound, but any attempt to use magic set the dizzy feeling to a new level.

Her gaze shifted straight ahead to where an arrow rested (in two) on the ground next to a paw-hand print…wolf claws but with a human-like shape.

Her head was pounding, eyes growing unfocused. The trees were spinning, the ground was spinning, everything was spinning.

What had she done?

She had a pretty good idea.

She felt sick, her body trembling twice as much.

Just how much of the blood was actually her own.

The arrow wounds screamed and seared. She didn't want to die. She didn't want to kill either.

Her vision went fuzzy…

Dark.


	3. Hypothermic Haze

**I'm not dead guys! I've been working on many other fics but I didn't forget this one, I promise!**

**Also wanted to thank everyone for the reviews, people seemed to like this fic which was what inspired me to continue this one before others.**

* * *

><p>Emma had found her lying naked in the middle of the forest. The woman was shivering furiously…and yet she had chosen to not even try keeping herself warm. Emma watched Regina tug herself into a sitting position and attempt to stand up.<p>

It worked initially but after a few stumbled steps, the mayor was once again lying face down in the snow.

Emma hustled over to Regina's side. She rolled the woman onto her back. "Regina, can you hear me?"

She looked completely dazed. "Hear…you? I can…only a little." She mumbled between slow, shallow breaths.

"How long have you been out here?"

"Dunno." Regina slurred. "I think…all night." She felt so woozy. Woozy and confused. Her thoughts drifting in many different directions, but all at once they were sluggish and disoriented. She couldn't seem to keep focus—that was more concerning than all else, Regina was always very attentive.

"I can't…" a drop of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth, drawing a thin crimson line horizontally over the side of her head and past her ear.

"You can't what?"

Regina let her head fall back over Emma's cradling arm, she hadn't the energy to keep it held upright. Emma's lips were moving but through the lapses in her attention and the constant alters between states of consciousness she could make out any words.

She felt Emma's fingers press into her soft part of her neck.

Regina couldn't imagine that her pulse was going to be easy to find in this state.

She felt herself drifting weightlessly back into the dark.

Regina sat herself upright. Her side thigh, and stomach still throbbing with lingering pain. Someone must have found her somewhere down the road. Someone…but she couldn't place who.

She was in the hospital….so it would seem.

Aside from the throbbing she couldn't feel her…well anything really. And maybe that was for the best. She'd rather be numb than feel whatever she was supposed to be feeling at the moment. Her fingers absent-mindedly made their way to the gash on her side.

Her pinky grazing over a thin trail of neat stitch work.

"Don't mess with those." Doctor Whale appeared in the room.

Her pinky lingered in place for a moment longer…until her mind connected the dots and she withdrew it.

"How bad is it?" She motioned to all three sets of stiches.

"Not as bad as the frost bite…and the hypothermia."

Regina put a palm over her forehead the daze in her head still heavy. She couldn't seem to pull herself out of it. "How did I get here?"

"You'll have to as Emma." He jabbed a thumb in the blonde's direction.

"I got a call from Hook—I can't really tell you what he was doing in the woods, because I don't really know either—but he said he saw you laying in the snow…and that there was blood…oh and a few arrows." Emma explained from the corner of the room. "So I decided to drive the sheriff car over there and check it out."

Regina nodded slightly, the faintest recollection of the night prior fuzzing up in her mind's eye. She fought the urge to shove it back down. She didn't care to remember how it felt to claw at her lover…really didn't care to recall her deep urge to rip his throat out with her teeth.

She shuddered and dropped her head back to the pillow.

"What were you doing out there anyways? And why the hell were you naked?" Emma prompted the memory back.

Frankly Regina didn't wish to discuss her own nudity with Ms. Swan. So she feigned another lapse in consciousness.

"Will you talk to me if I kick Whale out?"

A sigh pushed through Regina's lips as she mulled over how she'd explain her current situation; _I'm a werewolf but I don't know how I became such…or when. I was bitten by a werewolf but I don't know which one did it. Of if I was even bitten at all. _

Neither statements pleased Regina.

She also wasn't eager to share the story of how she had eaten a squirrel. The taste still lingered putrid and vial.

"Where's Robin?" She changed the subject.

"He's at his camp…with Roland."

Regina let out another sigh, this one spurned from relief.

"Shall I…see myself out while you talk?" Whale asked.

Emma opened her mouth to speak but Regina nodded affirmatively first. No sooner did the doctor make his way out; but not before popping his head back in for a second to assure Regina that he had tended to and taken care of all of her ailments.

"Alright Regina, you can either tell me what happened as a friend…or I can interrogate you as to why there was blood all over, sheriff style—and don't try to tell me that it's all yours either."

"But is it not?" Regina had to work in at least one snarky remark, lest the sheriff think her battle of wits game was no longer strong.

"Well it can't all be yours. Your mouth was filled with blood…and yet—as Doctor Whale put it—'you didn't sustain any oral injuries.' What happened, Regina."

"Emma, I need you to hear me out on this one…"


End file.
